Bosses urged to become Skype governors for remote schools

GOVERNORS who work via Skype are to be sent into struggling rural schools, as the Education Secretary issues a “call to arms” to business leaders to help avert a crisis in the dwindling numbers of volunteers.

“Flexi governors”, recruited from top firms, will use Facetime or Skype to join governing body meetings at schools in remote parts of the country.

While using a video call to dial into a meeting is “pretty standard” in the business world, Louise Cooper, the chief executive of Governors for Schools, said it represented “quite a culture change” for schools where members attend in person.

Governors for Schools, a national charity, recruits governors from top firms – including Deutsche Bank, Allen & Overy and PWC – and places them in schools around the country.

A report last year by the National Governance Association (NGA) found that almost a third of governing boards have one or two vacancies. The poll also found that 61 per cent were aged 50 or over, and only four per cent were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Speaking at a National Governance Association conference today, Damian Hinds, the Education Secretary, will urge business people to “play their part in bringing on the next generation” by signing up to the scheme. Issuing a “call to arms”, he will say: “I want to urge people from different backgrounds, different professions, to come forward – offer up your time, your energy, your skills, your expertise”.